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Has anyone else noticed that mechanics seem to use cheap, crappy Chinese made parts ?
The death of my car won’t be because it died, it will be because I’m sick of repairing it only to have the cheap parts break that all mechanics seem to use.
My brother is on his 3rd muffler in 4 years because it keeps rotting and falling off. The quality of the work is good-parts are garbage.
I just got new brakes put in my car, and the rotors are already warped. When I looked up the part number, it’s not even a brand. The break parts literally have no brand name-just made in China junk. Workmanship is good! Again, parts are junk.
Maybe it's the mechanic you are using; or you want to pay a very inexpensive price, and this is the result. Also, it's how/where you store your vehicle when not in use that contribute to some of these issues. With brakes, it can be driving habits. You don't have to suffer with second-rate parts.
It’s not the mechanic it’s the shop he works for. A mechanic tells the owner/manager of the shop what part they need and they order it from the auto parts store they have a account with. If you want to pay top dollar for factory original parts than you will pay allot more for a repair. Now some parts are only oem . So there’s your choices.
I agree that bargain auto parts are no bargain. Same thing goes for construction materials - many contractors want to save money on materials as well and propose this - but most of the cost is typically their labor, so the percentage savings on the bottom line by going with lousy materials vs quality materials is not that great, and then you'd be left with the uglier, poorer performing, faster degrading materials in your expensive job - no thanks.
Ad a retired mechanic( parts house blame the source of the parts.
I would order some items that would change from one country to another.
There is the middle man and in the end it is a toss up in quality controlled.
With the out source Can be a pain in the butt..
Rotors under Std. was a common problem that goes back 50 some yrs that I saw first hand
Factory books show many numbers that are just that...numbers as a guide.
A lot of the problem with that these days, is most of the parts are made in China...even the name brand ones that used to be made here in the US.
I've been a mechanic for over 40 years, and have witnessed this decline. Depends on the shop you're at too. Some only use the cheapest crap available, a good reputable shop will use known good quality parts.
I’d like to reiterate- I didn’t at all blame the mechanic.
Also, how is this on me? I take the car to a mechanic, I tell em’, “I think I need new brakes, etc” they fix it using junk parts.
I didn’t ask them to use junk parts. In fact, I didn’t ask anything.
Also, I don’t stomp on brakes or ride them hard. As for my brothers OEM muffler, it lasted 9 years in New England.
OK, there is your problem. You could just talk with the mechanic and/or the shop owner, explain you intend to keep the car for the long term, and that you want OEM quality level parts. If they can't or won't, go to a different shop. I have the best luck with small shops where the owner is on site and involved in the work going on, if not turning wrenches himself.
Most people, particularly people who are not "into" cars and are driving an older rig, just want the problem "fixed" for the lowest possible price, short term. If you don't say different, the shop is going to assume you are one of these people.
A lot of the problem with that these days, is most of the parts are made in China...even the name brand ones that used to be made here in the US.
I've been a mechanic for over 40 years, and have witnessed this decline. Depends on the shop you're at too. Some only use the cheapest crap available, a good reputable shop will use known good quality parts.
...and even then, push come to shove, they’ll use what’s available.
I worked on the parts side of things, and there were certain categories of parts which tended to be worse than others. Nevertheless, shops earn certain discount tiers based on how much they buy, so it’s likely that their best discount commercial account gets first call, and they aren’t vetting the parts that hard. Time is money in auto repair, and the faster you get a part, at a better discount, the more likely you’ll get it out in a timely fashion at a price the customer is ok with.
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